Patent Application
20230221138
The present disclosure relates to a ship navigation assistance technology which is used when anchoring a ship.
In Patent Document 1, a docking assistance device for a ship is disclosed. The docking assistance device disclosed in Patent Document 1 uses a distance measurement means to measure a distance between the ship and a plurality of points of a quay.
However, the distance measured by the distance measurement means as described in the conventional technology contains an error. In addition, this error occurs in every measurement of the distance, and increases sequentially.
Thus, one purpose of the present disclosure is to suppress an error which occurs in movement, such as in anchoring a ship.
A ship navigation assistance system (a/k/a a ship navigation assistance system) according to the present disclosure includes a measurement sensor and a characteristic information updating module. The measurement sensor acquires measurement information on an object using a ranging result of an area including the object that is an anchorage target of a ship. The characteristic information updating module updates characteristic information on the object using initial characteristic information on the object or characteristic information before updating on the object, and the measurement information.
According to this configuration, the ranging result is reflected on characteristic information after updating.
According to the present disclosure, the error which occurs in movement, such as in anchoring a ship, can be suppressed.
A ship navigation assistance technology according to one embodiment of the present disclosure is described with reference to the drawings.
As illustrated in
The provisional initial information specifier 20 may accept a specification of provisional initial information for characteristic information on an object to which a ship anchors or docks (docks to a pier). The provisional initial information specifier 20 may output the provisional initial information to the processing circuitry 40. For example, the object may be a quay (wall), the characteristic information may be a vector quantity of a quay line, or positional coordinates of a quay reference point, and the provisional initial information may be a provisional quay line (vector quantity) and a provisional quay reference point (positional coordinates).
The measurement sensor 30 may range or measure a distance to an area including the object to which the ship anchors or docks (docks to a pier). The measurement sensor 30 may acquire measurement information on the object using the ranging result. The measurement sensor 30 may output the measurement information to the processing circuitry 40. For example, the measurement information may be a vector quantity of a line segment (straight line).
The processing circuitry 40 may include an initial characteristic information setting module 41 and a characteristic information updating module 42. The provisional initial information may be inputted into the initial characteristic information setting module 41. The measurement information may be inputted into the initial characteristic information setting module 41 and the characteristic information updating module 42.
The initial characteristic information setting module 41 may set initial characteristic information using the provisional initial information and the measurement information. The initial characteristic information may be, for example, an initial quay line (vector quantity) and initial a quay reference point (positional coordinates).
In detail, for example, if the number of measurement information on the object is one, the initial characteristic information setting module 41 may set this measurement information as the initial characteristic information. If there are a plurality of measurement information on the object, the initial characteristic information setting module 41 may set the initial characteristic information based on the plurality of measurement information. For example, the initial characteristic information setting module 41 may detect measurement information (maximum likelihood measurement information) of which the position and the direction to the ship are most similar to the provisional initial information, among the plurality of measurement information. The initial characteristic information setting module 41 may set the maximum likelihood measurement information as the initial characteristic information. By performing such processing, the ship navigation assistance system 10 can suppress an error of the initial characteristic information, rather than when a user manually inputting the initial characteristic information. The initial characteristic information setting module 41 may output the initial characteristic information to the characteristic information updating module 42.
The characteristic information updating module 42 may update the characteristic information using the measurement information. For example, the characteristic information updating module 42 may update it to new characteristic information using the measurement information at a time point substantially the same as the setting timing of the initial characteristic information. Further, thereafter, the characteristic information updating module 42 may sequentially update the characteristic information using the acquired measurement information. Note that more detailed configuration and processing of the characteristic information updating module 42 will be described later.
By performing such processing, the characteristic information to be updated may be set based on the measurement information for every update. Therefore, even if the characteristic information is sequentially updated, an increase in the error can be suppressed. Therefore, for example, the ship navigation assistance system 10 can suppress an error which is contained in information to be acquired when the ship moves to the object (e.g., a spatial relationship, a distance, and a direction between the ship and the object). As a more concrete example, for example, it can suppress the errors contained in the distance and the direction between the ship and the quay line or the quay reference point in movement (docking), such as anchoring the ship.
As illustrated in
The camera 21 may be connected to the operational input interface 22. The camera 21 may be, for example, a monocular camera, which images an area including the object (for example, a quay). The camera 21 may output the captured image to the operational input interface 22.
The operational input interface 22 may be, for example, realized by a touch panel. The operational input interface 22 may display the inputted image. The operational input interface 22 may accept an operational input from a user, and detect an operated position on the image (a locus of the operation). The operational input interface 22 may output the operated position (the locus of the operation) to the provisional initial information setting sub-module 23.
The provisional initial information setting sub-module 23 may convert the operated position (the locus of the operation) into a vector quantity in a three-dimensional coordinate system which is set to the image, and set up it as provisional initial information. The provisional initial information setting sub-module 23 may output the provisional initial information to the processing circuitry 40.
The provisional initial information setting sub-module 23 may set this locus as the provisional quay line 920. The provisional quay line 920 may be expressed, for example, by a vector quantity which is set based on a direction and a distance on the basis of the position of the ship. The provisional quay line 920 may correspond to the provisional initial information. The provisional initial information setting sub-module 23 may output the provisional quay line 920 to the initial characteristic information setting module 41 of the processing circuitry 40.
As illustrated in
The rangefinder 31 may be realized by a LIDAR, for example Note that the rangefinder 31 may be a LADAR, or other distance measuring equipment, such as optical-based or radio-wave-based equipment. The rangefinder 31 may perform a three-dimensional ranging for the area including the object to detect a plurality of characteristic points. The rangefinder 31 may output the plurality of characteristic points to the measurement information generator module 33.
The attitude measurement sensor 32 may be, for example, realized by an attitude sensor provided to the ship. Note that the attitude sensor may use a positioning technique of GNSS signals, or may use an inertia sensor. Further, the attitude sensor may combine the positioning technique of the GNSS signals and the inertia sensor. When the positioning technique of the GNSS signals is used, the position (positional coordinates) of the ship can also be measured. Further, when the positioning technique of the GNSS signals is used, the attitude can be measured with high precision in an open-sky situation, like on the sea. The attitude measurement sensor 32 may measure the attitude of the ship. The attitude measurement sensor 32 may output the attitude of the ship to the measurement information generator module 33.
The measurement information generator module 33 may convert (project) the plurality of characteristic points obtained by three-dimensional coordinates into a two-dimensional coordinate system on a horizontal plane. Here, the measurement information generator module 33 can convert the plurality of characteristic points in the three-dimensional coordinate system into the two-dimensional coordinate system on the horizontal plane with high precision by utilizing the attitude of the ship, for example, even if the ship rolls or pitches.
The measurement information generator module 33 may apply a given conversion process (for example, a Hough conversion process) to the plurality of characteristic points disposed at the two-dimensional coordinates on the horizontal plane to generate the measurement information. The measurement information generator module 33 may output the generated measurement information to the initial characteristic information setting module 41 and the characteristic information updating module 42 of the processing circuitry 40. Note that the processing for converting the plurality of characteristic points obtained by the three-dimensional coordinates into the two-dimensional coordinate system on the horizontal plane can be omitted.
The processing circuitry 40 may include the initial characteristic information setting module 41 and the characteristic information updating module 42, as described above. The initial characteristic information setting module 41 is described above, and therefore, explanation thereof will be omitted below. The initial characteristic information setting module 41 may set the initial characteristic information using the provisional initial information and the measurement information, and output it to the characteristic information updating module 42.
The difference calculation module 421 may calculate a difference between the characteristic information and the measurement information. In more detail, when the initial characteristic information is inputted into the difference calculation module 421, the difference calculation module 421 may calculate the difference between the initial characteristic information and the measurement information corresponding to this timing. Further, when the characteristic information updated by the characteristic information calculation module 423 is fed back to the difference calculation module 421, the difference calculation module 421 may calculate a difference between the fed-back characteristic information and the measurement information corresponding to the fed-back timing Note that the measurement information corresponding to the timing illustrated here indicates, for example, the measurement information acquired at a time point immediately after that timing.
When a plurality of measurement information are acquired, the difference calculation module 421 may calculate a difference between the initial characteristic information or the fed-back characteristic information (the characteristic information before updating) and the measurement information, for every plurality of measurement information. The difference calculation module 421 may output the difference for each measurement information to the weighting coefficient setting module 422.
The weighting coefficient setting module 422 may set a weighting coefficient according to the difference for each measurement information.
The measurement information and the weighting coefficient w may be inputted into the characteristic information calculation module 423. The characteristic information calculation module 423 may calculate the characteristic information using the measurement information and the weighting coefficient w for this measurement information. In more detail, the characteristic information calculation module 423 may normalize the weighting coefficient w. The normalization as used herein is resetting the weighting coefficient w so that the sum total of adding up all the weighting coefficients becomes 1. Note that this normalization processing may be performed by the weighting coefficient setting module 422.
The characteristic information calculation module 423 may multiply the measurement information by the normalized weighting coefficient w. The characteristic information calculation module 423 may output a result of summing the measurement information by which the weighting coefficient w was multiplied, as new characteristic information (characteristic information after updating).
By such a configuration and processing, the updated characteristic information may be generated by the addition of the measurement information which used the ranging result. Therefore, the accumulation of the error by repeating the update is suppressed.
Further, the measurement information may be multiplied by the weighting coefficient. Then, the weighting coefficient may be set so that its influence to the updated characteristic information becomes smaller as the difference from the characteristic information before the update becomes larger. Therefore, the updated characteristic information becomes highly precise to the actual characteristic information, because the influence of the error contained in the characteristic information before updating is reduced.
Therefore, the ship navigation assistance system 10 is capable of generating the characteristic information which is highly precise to the actual characteristic information, while suppressing the updating error.
As illustrated in
The provisional quay information specifier 20e may include the camera 21, the operational input interface 22, and a provisional quay line setting sub-module 23e. The provisional quay line setting sub-module 23e corresponds to the provisional initial information setting sub-module 23, and can be implemented as provisional initial information setting circuitry, and may set a provisional quay line (see the provisional quay line 920 in
The measurement sensor 30e may include the rangefinder 31, the attitude measurement sensor 32, and a measurement line generating module 33e. The measurement line generating module 33e corresponds to the measurement information generator module 33, and can be implemented as measurement information generation circuitry, and may generate a straight measurement line using the plurality of characteristic points obtained by the ranging and the attitude of a ship 100. The measurement line may be represented by a distance p from a reference point (for example, a sensor position) 111 of the ship 100, and a direction θ of the measurement line on the basis of the position of the ship 100. As illustrated in
The processing circuitry 40e may include an initial quay line setting module 41e and a quay information updating module 42e. The initial quay line setting module 41e corresponds to the initial characteristic information setting module 41, and the quay information updating module 42e corresponds to the characteristic information updating module 42.
The quay information updating module 42e may include the difference calculation module 421, the weighting coefficient setting module 422, and a quay line calculation module 423e. The quay line calculation module 423e corresponds to the characteristic information calculation module 423.
The provisional quay line and the measurement line may be inputted into the initial quay line setting module 41e. If the number of measurement lines is one, the initial quay line setting module 41e may set this measurement line as the initial quay line. If the number of measurement lines is two or more, the initial quay line setting module 41e may set a maximum likelihood measurement line among the plurality of measurement lines as the initial quay line. For example, the initial quay line setting module 41e may set the maximum likelihood measurement line, for example, as a measurement line with parameters most similar to the parameters (the distance p and the direction θ) of the provisional quay line. The initial quay line setting module 41e may output the initial quay line to the quay information updating module 42e.
The initial quay line and the measurement line may be inputted into the difference calculation module 421 of the quay information updating module 42e. The difference calculation module 421 may calculate a difference between each of the measurement lines and the initial quay line. Here, the difference calculation module 421 may calculate the difference for each parameter. That is, the difference calculation module 421 may calculate, for one measurement line, a difference Δρ of the distance ρ and a difference Δθ of the direction θ, with respect to the initial quay line.
For example, as illustrated in
The difference calculation module 421 may calculate a difference Δρ1(T1) between the distance ρ1(T1) of the measurement line 931(T1), and a distance ρ(T0) of the last quay line 920(T0). The difference calculation module 421 may calculate a difference Δθ1(T1) between the direction θ1(T1) of the measurement line 931(T1) and the direction θ(T0) of the last quay line 920(T0). Similarly, the difference calculation module 421 may calculate a difference Δρ2(T1) and a difference Δθ2(T1) for the measurement line 932(T1), calculate a difference Δρ3(T1) and a difference Δθ3(T1) for the measurement line 933(T1), and calculate a difference Δρ4(T1) and a difference Δθ4(T1) for the measurement line 934(T1). Then, the difference calculation module 421 may output these differences to the weighting coefficient setting module 422.
The weighting coefficient setting module 422 may set the weighting coefficients according to the differences. In more detail, the weighting coefficient setting module 422 may set a first weighting coefficient wρ for the distance ρ according to the difference Δρ of the distance p. The weighting coefficient setting module 422 may set a second weighting coefficient wθ for the direction θ according to the difference Δθ of the direction θ. The weighting coefficient setting module 422 may output the first weighting coefficient wρ and the second weighting coefficient wθ to the quay line calculation module 423e.
The quay line calculation module 423e may normalize the first weighting coefficient wρ using the number of measurement lines to be added, respectively. The quay line calculation module 423e may normalize the second weighting coefficient wθ using the number of measurement lines to be added, respectively.
The quay line calculation module 423e may multiply, for every measurement line, the distance ρ by the normalized first weighting coefficient wρ, and add up these multiplied values. For example, for the example of
The quay line calculation module 423e may multiply, for every measurement line, the direction θ by the normalized second weighting coefficient wθ, and add up these multiplied values. For example, for the example of
By performing such processing, the quay line 920 may be updated sequentially as illustrated in
Thus, by using the configuration of this embodiment, the ship navigation assistance system 10e can update the quay line 920 sequentially, and can suppress the accumulation of the updating error. Especially, by using this configuration and processing, as illustrated in
In the above description, each processing may be performed by an individual functional module. However, the above processing can be implemented by being stored as a ship navigation assistance program and being executed by processing circuitry. In this case, the processing may be executed according to the flow illustrated in each of the following drawings. Note that, in the concrete contents of the processing in the following description, the detailed description of the above-described contents is omitted.
As illustrated in
As a more concrete example, when the object is the quay, as illustrated in
As illustrated in
As a more concrete example, when the object is the quay, as illustrated in
Note that the weighting coefficient may be adjusted according to a traveling state of the ship.
As illustrated in
By performing such processing, the ship navigation assistance systems 10 and 10e can update the characteristic information (for example, the quay line) with higher accuracy.
Further, in the above description, the acquired measurement information may be used for the update of the characteristic information as much as possible. However, the measurement information which does not satisfy a condition may not be used.
As illustrated in
By performing such processing, the ship navigation assistance systems 10 and 10e can eliminate, from the calculation of the characteristic information, the measurement information which has a bad influence to the calculation of the characteristic information (clearly far from the object, clearly different in shape, etc.).
By performing such processing, the characteristic information (quay line) can be updated continuously, for example, even if the measurement information (measurement line) is hardly acquired at a certain timing.
Further, the ship navigation assistance systems 10 and 10e may adopt an averaging processing of the characteristic information (e.g., a moving average). For example, the characteristic information calculation module 423 of the processing circuitry 40 may calculate the updated characteristic information by carrying out the averaging processing with weighting of the characteristic information before updating and the calculated characteristic information. Further, in more detail, the quay line calculation module 423e of the processing circuitry 40e may calculate the updated quay line by carrying out the averaging processing with weighting of the quay line before updating and the calculated quay line.
In this case, although the converging speed of the characteristic information by the update becomes slower by increasing the weight of the characteristic information (quay line) before updating, the influence by the error of the measurement information (measurement line) can be reduced. For example, if the ship is a large ship or a vessel, this is especially useful because the influence by the error is more important than the converging speed.
In the above description, the update and the output of the characteristic information (for example, the update and the output of the quay line) may be performed. However, the ship navigation assistance systems 10 and 10e can generate further navigation assistance information using the acquired characteristic information (for example, the quay line).
As illustrated in
As a more concrete example, when the characteristic information is the quay line, as illustrated in
In the above-described concrete description, the quay line may be calculated and updated. However, it is also possible to calculate and update other characteristic information related to the quay. Below, as other characteristic information, the quay reference point is calculated and updated. Note that the quay reference point is a reference point when the ship 100 docks, which is located on the quay line.
The ship navigation assistance system 10f may include a provisional quay information specifier 20f, a measurement sensor 30f, and processing circuitry 40f. The provisional quay information specifier 20f may include the camera 21, the operational input interface 22, a provisional quay line setting sub-module 231f, the provisional quay reference point setting sub-module 232f, and the quay reference point information setting sub-module 233f. The provisional quay line setting sub-module 231f may have a similar function to the provisional quay line setting sub-module 23e, and can be implemented as provisional initial information setting circuitry.
The measurement sensor 30f may include the rangefinder 31, the attitude measurement sensor 32, a measurement line generating module 33f, and the position measurement sensor 34. The measurement line generating module 33f may have a similar function to the measurement line generating module 33e and can be implemented as measurement information generation circuitry. The position measurement sensor 34 may have, for example, a positioning function of the GNSS, which measures the position of the ship 100.
The processing circuitry 40f may include an initial quay line setting module 41f and a quay information updating module 42f. The initial quay line setting module 41f may have a similar function to the initial quay line setting module 41e.
The quay information updating module 42f may include the difference calculation module 421, the weighting coefficient setting module 422, a quay line calculation module 423f, and the quay reference point calculation module 424f. The quay line calculation module 423f may have a similar function to the quay line calculation module 423e.
The update of the quay line is similar to that of the above-described ship navigation assistance system 10e, and description thereof is omitted.
The provisional quay reference point setting sub-module 232f may set the provisional quay reference point using the operational input result. For example, the provisional quay reference point setting sub-module 232f may detect coordinates of an operated position on a screen, and set them as the provisional quay reference point. The provisional quay reference point setting sub-module 232f may output the provisional quay reference point to the quay reference point information setting sub-module 233f.
The quay reference point information setting sub-module 233f may calculate a direction ψ of the provisional quay reference point on the basis of the ship 100 using the provisional quay reference point, and the attitude of the ship 100 and the position of the ship 100. Then, the quay reference point information setting sub-module 233f may set the provisional quay reference point including this direction ψ as the initial quay reference point. The quay reference point information setting sub-module 233f may output the direction ψ of the initial quay reference point on the basis of the ship 100, which is indicated using the direction ψ, to the quay reference point calculation module 424f of the processing circuitry 40f.
The updated quay line, the initial quay reference point, the position of the ship 100, and the attitude of the ship 100 may be inputted into the quay reference point calculation module 424f. The quay reference point calculation module 424f may calculate a variation Δψ of the direction ψ using a variation in the position and a variation in the attitude of the ship 100 from the updating timing of the previous quay reference point. The quay reference point calculation module 424f may correct the direction ψ of the initial quay reference point or the direction ψ before updating by the variation Δψ, and update the direction ψ.
The quay reference point calculation module 424f may calculate an intersection between a straight line indicated by the updated direction ψ, and the updated quay line. The quay reference point calculation module 424f may calculate coordinates of the updated quay reference point based on the distance between the intersection and the ship 100, and the position of the ship 100. Thus, the quay reference point calculation module 424f may update the quay reference point.
By using such a configuration and processing, for example, as illustrated in
First, in
In
In
In the above description, each processing may be executed by the individual functional module. However, the above processing can be realized by being stored as a ship navigation assistance program and being executed by processing circuitry. In this case, the processing may be executed according to the flow illustrated in each of the following drawings. Note that, in the concrete contents of the processing in the following description, the detailed description of the above-described contents is omitted.
The processing circuitry may acquire a traveled distance (a variation in the position) and a variation in the attitude of the ship 100 (S43). The processing circuitry may update the quay reference point (direction) using the direction of the quay reference point before updating, and the traveled distance (the variation in the position) and the variation in the attitude of the ship 100 (S44). The processing circuitry may update the quay reference point (positional coordinates) using the updated quay reference point (direction) and the updated quay line (S45).
By using such processing, the ship navigation assistance system 10f can suppress the error in the update of the quay reference point, as well as the update of the quay line.
In the above explanation, the provisional initial information (provisional quay line) may be set by the user's operational input. However, it is also possible to set the provisional initial information based on the past data of the characteristic information on the object.
The processing circuitry may store the positional coordinates of the past of the quay line. The processing circuitry may read the positional coordinates of the past of the quay line (S61). The processing circuitry may acquire the positional coordinates of the ship (which anchors or docks to the object) (S62). The acquisition of the positional coordinates of the ship may be realizable, for example, by using the above-described positioning technique of the GNSS signals.
The processing circuitry may calculate a relative position of the quay line with respect to the ship by using these positional coordinates (S63). The processing circuitry may set the provisional quay line based on the relative position (S64). For example, the processing circuitry may convert the relative position into a vector quantity set by a distance and a direction on the basis of the ship, and set the provisional quay line.
Note that, here, the positional coordinates of the past of the quay line may be used. However, it is also possible to set a reference station to the quay line and a mobile station to the ship, to detect the relative position by using the technologies of DGPS or RTK, and to set the provisional quay line. Further, it is also possible to receive the coordinates of the quay line from external equipment and set the provisional quay line.
Moreover, in the above description, the initial information is set based on the measurement information, while using the provisional initial information as the reference. However, the provisional initial information may be set as the initial information as it is. Especially, when the above-described positioning technique of the GNSS signals is used, since the provisional initial information is less in the errors, it may be used for the initial information as it is.
Further, in the above description, the example in which the quay is the object is illustrated. However, as long as the object is a pier, another ship, etc., which is an object to which the ship anchors, the above-described configuration and processing are applicable.
Further, in the above description, the example in which the straight line (line segment) is used as the characteristic information is illustrated. However, it is also possible to use a point, a surface, or a curve as the characteristic information, and, also in these cases, the above-described configuration and processing are applicable.
It is to be understood that not necessarily all objects or advantages may be achieved in accordance with any particular embodiment described herein. Thus, for example, those skilled in the art will recognize that certain embodiments may be configured to operate in a manner that achieves or optimizes one advantage or group of advantages as taught herein without necessarily achieving other objects or advantages as may be taught or suggested herein.
All of the processes described herein may be embodied in, and fully automated via, software code modules executed by a computing system that includes one or more computers or processors. The code modules may be stored in any type of non-transitory computer-readable medium or other computer storage device. Some or all the methods may be embodied in specialized computer hardware.
Many other variations than those described herein will be apparent from this disclosure. For example, depending on the embodiment, certain acts, events, or functions of any of the algorithms described herein can be performed in a different sequence, can be added, merged, or left out altogether (e.g., not all described acts or events are necessary for the practice of the algorithms). Moreover, in certain embodiments, acts or events can be performed concurrently, e.g., through multi-threaded processing, interrupt processing, or multiple processors or processor cores or on other parallel architectures, rather than sequentially. In addition, different tasks or processes can be performed by different machines and/or computing systems that can function together.
The various illustrative logical blocks and modules described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented or performed by a machine, such as a processor. A processor can be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor can be a controller, microcontroller, or state machine, combinations of the same, or the like. A processor can include electrical circuitry configured to process computer-executable instructions. In another embodiment, a processor includes an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable device that performs logic operations without processing computer-executable instructions. A processor can also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combination of a digital signal processor (DSP) and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration. Although described herein primarily with respect to digital technology, a processor may also include primarily analog components. For example, some or all of the signal processing algorithms described herein may be implemented in analog circuitry or mixed analog and digital circuitry. A computing environment can include any type of computer system, including, but not limited to, a computer system based on a microprocessor, a mainframe computer, a digital signal processor, a portable computing device, a device controller, or a computational engine within an appliance, to name a few.
Conditional language such as, among others, “can,” “could,” “might” or “may,” unless specifically stated otherwise, are otherwise understood within the context as used in general to convey that certain embodiments include, while other embodiments do not include, certain features, elements and/or steps. Thus, such conditional language is not generally intended to imply that features, elements and/or steps are in any way required for one or more embodiments or that one or more embodiments necessarily include logic for deciding, with or without user input or prompting, whether these features, elements and/or steps are included or are to be performed in any particular embodiment.
Disjunctive language such as the phrase “at least one of X, Y, or Z,” unless specifically stated otherwise, is otherwise understood with the context as used in general to present that an item, term, etc., may be either X, Y, or Z, or any combination thereof (e.g., X, Y, and/or Z). Thus, such disjunctive language is not generally intended to, and should not, imply that certain embodiments require at least one of X, at least one of Y, or at least one of Z to each be present.
Any process descriptions, elements or blocks in the flow diagrams described herein and/or depicted in the attached figures should be understood as potentially representing modules, segments, or portions of code which include one or more executable instructions for implementing specific logical functions or elements in the process. Alternate implementations are included within the scope of the embodiments described herein in which elements or functions may be deleted, executed out of order from that shown, or discussed, including substantially concurrently or in reverse order, depending on the functionality involved as would be understood by those skilled in the art.
Unless otherwise explicitly stated, articles such as “a” or “an” should generally be interpreted to include one or more described items. Accordingly, phrases such as “a device configured to” are intended to include one or more recited devices. Such one or more recited devices can also be collectively configured to carry out the stated recitations. For example, “a processor configured to carry out recitations A, B and C” can include a first processor configured to carry out recitation A working in conjunction with a second processor configured to carry out recitations B and C. The same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce embodiment recitations. In addition, even if a specific number of an introduced embodiment recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should typically be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare recitation of “two recitations,” without other modifiers, typically means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations).
It will be understood by those within the art that, in general, terms used herein, are generally intended as “open” terms (e.g., the term “including” should be interpreted as “including but not limited to,” the term “having” should be interpreted as “having at least,” the term “includes” should be interpreted as “includes but is not limited to,” etc.).
For expository purposes, the term “horizontal” as used herein is defined as a plane parallel to the plane or surface of the floor of the area in which the system being described is used or the method being described is performed, regardless of its orientation. The term “floor” can be interchanged with the term “ground” or “water surface.” The term “vertical” refers to a direction perpendicular to the horizontal as just defined. Terms such as “above,” “below,” “bottom,” “top,” “side,” “higher,” “lower,” “upper,” “over,” and “under,” are defined with respect to the horizontal plane.
As used herein, the terms “attached,” “connected,” “mated,” and other such relational terms should be construed, unless otherwise noted, to include removable, moveable, fixed, adjustable, and/or releasable connections or attachments. The connections/attachments can include direct connections and/or connections having intermediate structure between the two components discussed.
Numbers preceded by a term such as “approximately,” “about,” and “substantially” as used herein include the recited numbers, and also represent an amount close to the stated amount that still performs a desired function or achieves a desired result. For example, the terms “approximately,” “about,” and “substantially” may refer to an amount that is within less than 10% of the stated amount. Features of embodiments disclosed herein preceded by a term such as “approximately,” “about,” and “substantially” as used herein represent the feature with some variability that still performs a desired function or achieves a desired result for that feature.
It should be emphasized that many variations and modifications may be made to the above-described embodiments, the elements of which are to be understood as being among other acceptable examples. All such modifications and variations are intended to be included herein within the scope of this disclosure and protected by the following claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-140550 | Aug 2020 | JP | national |
This application is a continuation-in-part of PCT International Application No. PCT/JP2021/026771, which was filed on Jul. 16, 2021, and which claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No. 2020-140550 filed on Aug. 24, 2020, the entire disclosures of each of which are herein incorporated by reference for all purposes.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | PCT/JP2021/026771 | Jul 2021 | US |
| Child | 18174400 | US |
